The Winds of the Past [Rune Factory 4]

Chapter 46

"Okay, we'll do that. I promise." Then Avani headed for the door, pulling me along behind her.

We took the airship to the Autumn Road, and I led the way south. As I had thought, there was a clearing with four stumps, situated so as to form the corners of a square. We knelt down in the center of the square and began to dig.

Before long, Avani bumped something solid. Scraping the dirt away from around it, we discovered a small but solid chest, well sealed. I lifted it out and opened it, and inside was a yellowed page, similar to the other two. "Well. Let's see what this one says." Although I tried to keep my tone light and cheerful, I doubted that I fooled her anymore than I fooled myself—I was trembling with fear and anxiety as I held up the page for a closer look.

Again summarizing as I translated, I read the content of the page. "It says.... Even after the man left her, she still didn't cry. Even when her mother and father passed away, still she held back her tears. Whenever she was upset or hurt, instead of crying, she would go to the tower and look at their names carved there. No one else knew of her promise, so she was seen as a cold-hearted, mean-spirited woman, disliked by most. And in time, she was left all alone."

"All alone...." I repeated, feeling stricken. The only other mark on the page was a square in the corner, corresponding to the triangle on the previous page. I flipped it over. On the back was a note:

Southwest of the shrine you'll find a lake,

If the southern road you take.

And if you wish upon a star,

You'll find a page—go west, not far.

I looked over at Avani, who was lost in thought. "Hey. Did I mention that I used to drag Maria all over the place?" She looked at me and nodded. "Well, so far these pages have been buried in spots that she and I used to visit—old haunts, where we'd spend hours at a time playing. And it's been bothering me... why she picked these places, I mean. What was the point? But I think I'm beginning to understand. Kiel said it was like a treasure hunt... but instead it reminds me of our childhood, when I'd wander all over the countryside with her in tow. I wonder... what was she thinking, what did she feel when she buried these pages? Was she thinking of me? Or...."

I stood up and looked towards the east. "Well, let's see what the next note brings, shall we? I believe I know just where to look for it." I helped her up and we returned to the waiting airship.

I set a course for Sercerezo Lake, explaining that it had to be the lake found by taking the southern road from the shrine—the ruins of the old water shrine—and looking to the southwest of the shrine. The only other lake in the area was Keeno lake, which couldn't be reached by the road south. Once at the lake, I remembered that there had once been a little grove a little ways west. The grove was surely long gone, but there might be some traces remaining.

We followed the path west, and there I saw that where the grove had once stood, there were now only five massive, ancient stumps remaining. Avani darted to the center of the cluster, and began to dig. A moment later, she sprang up, holding something out for me to see. "Look, Leo! A coin—a really old one, too—I've never seen one like it. Or not that I remember, anyway."

I took the coin from her. "Yes, this was one of the coins used in my time, minted shortly before my imprisonment, I'd guess—they'd changed the designs only a couple of years before, when the new king was crowned."

"Then this must be the place!" she cried, excitedly, kneeling down and starting to dig again.

I knelt down and joined her. After a while, we again struck something solid, and soon we were lifting out another small chest. My heart raced as I opened the box and beheld yet another page of ancient text within. I tried to lift it out, but my hands shook so that I couldn't grasp it. "My Lady... will you pick it up for me? My hands are shaking."